Our Special Projects Division shop just completed the design, construction and installation of a custom bed for a recent project of ours and it’s got us thinking about furniture, building things by hand and timelessness. In the age of assembly lines and mass produced furniture, there is a tangible quality to something built by hand in a wood shop. Call us luddites on this one, but when it comes to the furniture that you touch and feel each day, there is a significant value in having something in your home crafted by a person (rather than a machine).
The piece is made from quarter-sawn walnut veneer with solid edge-banding; it includes an integrated bench at the foot of the bed and storage cubbies on each side. The design is simple and straight-forward, it’s everything it needs to be and nothing more. While not overly special or precious, this piece of furniture may very well be a fixture in the home for the life of the house. And nothing would be a greater compliment to us.
With the holidays upon us, it’s a great time to rekindle the act of building something with your own hands. There’s also no better gesture than giving something filled with the intention and care that comes with a hand-built gift. For the holiday season we propose rolling up your sleeves and getting your hands dirty. Build something, make something, put some materials together. It could be as small as a set of children’s wood blocks or as big as a piece of furniture – what it is, is hardly the point. It’s about unplugging your hands from the keyboard and re-engaging with the primal act of making.
Check out what we’re doing in the shop via Twitter.